Sunday was a good day! (KB Tri #4 report and some boat action)

Yesterday was pretty stellar as far as good days go.

It started at 5:30 am when I woke up to compete in the bonus round for the Key Biscayne triathlon trilogy series. Just a sprint distance -- quick and fun. And it became even more fun when I crossed the finish line 2:18 faster than the previous races. That's right. We're seeing some major progress.

Final time was 1:06:21. A personal best for the sprint distance.
The swim (1/4 mile) was a bit rough. (Literally -- the wind was blowing so there were waves so my time was a tad longer than past races.) But I finished my Bike in 30:58 (1:31 faster than my fastest time). And the run in 24:52 (fastest time by :40). That's an 8:01 mile pace people! I was so excited.


I came in 2nd for my age group. For the series I finished 5th overall! One caveat on the overall finish -- you got bonus points for the bonus round (hence the name I guess??) so I think that's why I passed up some people. (I've been finishing in the top 10/top 15 for the other races.) But 5th nonetheless so I am pleased! And I'd like to give a shout out and thanks to KC -- none of this could happen without him! :)

Next up in the tri life: Escape to Miami Olympic Distance Tri Oct 5. You have to jump out of a boat into the water for the start. It's crazy fun. And then we have the race of all races (for me that is)...what I've been training for all year -- Miami Man Half Ironman Nov 9 (mark your calendars family because you must be there. Team Gizzie needs you for this long race!)

Then, after the race, I went out on the water for the rest of the day with my awesome friends. A blast was had as usual. Needless to say, this busy (and apparently now fast) bee crashed pretty hard last night.

Seriously folks...does a day get any better than this??

It's been a REALLY bad week...yet I am thankful!

I am not going to lie. This week has sucked on many different levels. Probably one of the worst I've had in a really long time. And it's resulted in an inordinate amount of negativity on my part. So when I got home from work tonight, I decided to go for a long walk to get some alone time and listen to music and just think. And boy am I glad I did. Because as I walked out onto Key Biscayne and looked out into the amazing water and watched the sun set, I realized how lame I have been this week to let all these things get to me when I have SO much to be thankful for. And while this post may seem a little lame (and probably more appropriate for Thanksgiving Day or something), for some reason I thought it was important to write just a few of those things down now. So here goes. Bear with me here people.

I have been so blessed with a great family and the most amazing friends. Without you all I am nothing.

I live in a place where I get to wake up every morning and see the ocean. (And I swim in said ocean almost every week.) Most people can't say that.

I live in a city where I can be active outside all year round. Sure it gets toasty here in the summer, but a little sweat never hurt anyone. And man you can't beat the winters. And I know, I know, some of you think I am slightly crazy for my "activities" that I partake in year round, but at least I am healthy! Which is another thing I am thankful for...my health.

I've been able to travel to some pretty awesome places and I've met so many interesting people.

I am about to finish a personal project that is almost 2 WHOLE YEARS in the making. Something I was not sure would ever come to an end. So YAY!

Most importantly (and despite that fact that this tends to be the thing I forget the most), I am so thankful that there is Someone who is in control and has a plan for my life.

Well, that's really all I wanted to write down for now. As I said, I know this may be kinda lame, but perhaps it made you think of something YOU are thankful for.

Oh, and before I peace out, I do want to give two quick shout outs:
Chelsea -- My very first friend on this earth. HAPPY BIRTHDAY. Sorry I did not call or write. I know I suck. But I did think of you often this week. I am so very thankful after all these years that we are still friends. Love you and your beautiful family and can't wait for the latest addition to arrive!
Scooter -- Have a great weekend. If anyone deserves it, it's you. Thank you for everything you do. Your hard work does not go unnoticed. And most importantly, keep your eye on the prize, my friend. (November...in case this week beat you up so much that you can't remember. HA.) :)

I'm a total slacker, I know!

So it's been a while since my last post. Almost a month. Sorry all you faithful readers (totaling all of probably 1. HA!)

Anyway, a lot has happened but I am going to keep this as short as possible. August has been filled with many great things. I was in LA for a few weeks for work. Got back just in time for my little H-chy's 6th birthday and a tropical storm. (I know, I can't believe she's 6 already either!) She had a Happy Feet skating party thrown by super mommy (aka wendy).

We had a fishing tournament at work. It was right on the heels of Tropical Storm Faye so the water was a tad rough that day. Even rougher was the bite. We caught only 4 fish the whole time (a yellowtail, 2 groupers and we can't forget rebecca's grunt), all not of legal size so we had to throw them back. Despite the horrible bite, we had a blast on the water. Thanks Denise and Danny for hosting our team.

I had another triathlon - Key Biscayne Trilogy #3. I finished 10th in my age group with a time of 1:08:39. My swim was faster than last time (1/4 mile, 5:55). Bike was 32:29 (10 miles). And I continue to get better on my run. 3.1 miles in 25:32. That's right my friends, an 8:14 minute mile pace. (I know, i know, for someone like Tony or KC it's like walking, but, um, for me, that's fast. Like lightening fast.) And, I am starting to perfect the champion pose at the end of the race. Don't ya think?

ALSO on the triathlon front, I somehow convinced Rebecca and Denise during our fishing tournament to do the duathlon (run, bike, run) for Trilogy #3 and they both did amazing. HUGE congrats to them. They're planning to do #4 (a bonus round) and have even recruited at least one other person.

The month ended with a rockin' trip to Aspen, CO this labor day weekend for my good friend Pam's 40th b-day bash. I'll do a separate post on that later this week because it DEFINITELY deserves it.